Dreaming of bed shopping made easy? We feel you. Trying to decide what bed is right for your needs isn’t exactly a task to tackle with your eyes closed. To make things easier, we’ve assembled a bed-buying cheatsheet. Here are three things to consider when trying to make the call between that modest queen or that splurge-y California king bed frame.
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Consider Your Sleeping Arrangement
The first order of business: take inventory of your sleeping partners. Be they humans, dogs, cats, or your laptop (because insomnia staved off by streaming old episodes of The Office is real), include them all in your count. If you have pet co-sleepers, take stock of where they sleep, too. Do they prefer to curl up next to you, or are they more of the ankle warming type? Side-by-side sleeping humans and pets might prefer a bed with more width, while those with pets who prefer the bottom portion of the bed (or a laptop routinely stationed at the end) might prefer one with more length.
This is also an apt time to consider your height and the height of your co-sleepers. If you or your sleeping partner is especially tall, you may want to consider a bed with more length. (i.e. a California king.)
Consider Your Bedroom Space
While we can all dream of a bigger bed, sometimes a room’s space limitations make it a no-go. Measure the wall you intend to place your bed on to ensure it fits width-wise. Consider if you want nightstands, and if so, what size bed allows you to include them? California king beds are longer than the standard full, queen, and kind beds, so ensure you still have pass-by room should you opt for one. Be mindful of bedroom, closet, and bathroom door sweeps as well.
Consider Your Future Moves
If you haven’t landed in what you’re comfortable calling forever home, it can be wise to factor potential future spaces into your bed frame decision. Opting for a smaller full or queen bed ensures that your bed will easily move from space to space, while a larger bed like king or California king can be more of a gamble. All of that said, most rooms are constructed to accommodate a king (the widest of all beds). Just know that if you do, your nightstands might be liable to get the boot.
Lead photo by Eleven Interiors / Photo by Eric Roth
